SPIRITS AUCTIONS LEGALIZED IN NEW YORK STATE

Gov. Eliot Spitzer signed legislation late Wednesday (August 15) allowing the auction of distilled spirits in the state, making New York only the eighth state in the nation to legalize such sales, according to DISCUS. There is a 60-day period before the law goes into effect.

Christie’s, the world's leading art business and a supporter of the new law, immediately announced plans to hold the first liquor auction in New York through NYWines Christie's this December. This will be the first such auction in New York since Prohibition began in 1920.

The Distilled Spirits Council estimates that millions of dollars in exclusive spirits sales have been lost to London, Paris, Glasgow and other auction centers around the globe because spirits auctions have been against the law in New York, costing the state large amounts in lost sales taxes.